Wishes
by ZoZo1770
Summary: Jareth is dying when Sarah summons him. What do they have to say to each other before it is too late?


Summary: Jareth is dying when Sarah summons him. What do they have to say to each other before it is too late?

Disclaimer: don't own, blah blah blah...

A/N: I use the word 'fae' in this story, which is simply an older word for fairy/faerie/however you spell it. It sounds cooler. XD Enjoy!

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Jareth lay on his enormous bed, staring at the ceiling of his chambers, his chest rising and falling rapidly with every rasping, shuddering breath he took.

Ever since Sa – the _girl_ –had rejected him, he had begun to care less and less about his Labyrinth. It was fading, along with his mood. The maze walls were slowly crumbling, the plants had withered away, and the sky had grown black long ago. The Goblin King's skin had grown pale and cold, his limbs were weak, his head was throbbing and his chest felt like it was being torn in two.

He was dying.

Yet he did not care at all.

After all, what was living worth if he was alone? The bold yet beautiful girl he had loved dearly, the only who he would wholly offer himself to, had left. Couldn't she _see_ how much he loved her? Didn't she understand what he had meant when he offered her a Fae life in his Labyrinth with him?

Obviously not.

All _she_ cared about was her wretched brother, the one whom she had wished away in the first place. If it weren't for _him_ none of this would have ever happened, and he… he wouldn't be so _infatuated _with the girl!

Sighing wearily, Jareth closed his mismatched eyes. It had been nearly two years for the girl since she had rejected his offer, but only six months for him. She had probably forgotten all about him, yet she was the only thing he could think about.

A sudden bolt of rage shot through him and he sat up in anger, his eyes flashing.

_Why _couldn't he just _forget_ about her?

Because he couldn't _live_ without her.

He collapsed back onto the pillows, wincing as the agony in his chest worsened and his head gave another jolt of pain.

He didn't very have long left at all.

Her face swam into his pounding head. Her smooth porcelain skin, her piercing eyes, her long, flowing, chocolate hair.

If only he could see her face one last time…

_I wish…_

What?

_I wish…_

No… it couldn't be.

Could it? Was it… was it _her_?

_I wish the Goblin King would come and take me away_.

Yes.

_Right now_.

Did she _have_ to add that last part to her wish?

Jareth raised himself slowly once more into a sitting position on the bed, gasping quietly at the pain. It was agony to move. Yet he had no choice. He had been summoned; he must go to her.

He was in her room in an instant, painful as it was. The room was the same as ever. The mirror above the dressing table, which was adorned with trinket boxes and figurines, her miniature library of books, her makeup.

She was sitting in a chair beside her bed, her head darting up as he appeared by the window. Her toys and her books were strewn across the wooden floor and her gentle face was solemn. She now had to be about seventeen, and had grown into a beautiful young woman. Her smooth chocolate hair now reached her small waist, and she was wearing a red dress that hugged her slim figure perfectly.

'Jareth.'

Jareth studied her.

'S – Sarah.' It hurt to speak her name. His headache was growing more and more unbearable by the second. 'Why did you summon me?'

Sarah looked away.

'Well, well, Sarah,' Jareth rasped, his throat feeling as though there were a thousand nails rammed into it, 'who'd have thought that _you_, who are usually so headstrong and brave, can't even look into the face of the Goblin King?'

Sarah's eyes darted up to meet his and she reached for a teddy, throwing it at Jareth, who easily avoided it. 'It's not _that_! You think you're so – when really you're – you're just –'

'Why are you so angry? What's gotten into you all of a sudden?'

Sarah sighed and walked towards Jareth. 'I just want to go _away_, away from here. I'm sick of _everything_.'

'Explain…'

'My dad divorced Irene and left Toby and I with her a year ago. I – I just…'

Sarah exploded. 'I _hate_ her, she's such a _bitch_! All she cares about is her precious Toby – doesn't give a _damn_ about me! We always argue about everything and she _never_ lets me see my dad! Not that I _want_ to, anyway…'

She sighed in exasperation. 'I'm so fed _up_.'

Jareth couldn't believe his ears. He moved towards her so quickly she took a step back, her eyes widening.

'So, what you're _really _trying to say,' Jareth began viciously, letting his anger take over, 'is as soon as life in the Aboveground gets too tiring or too boring for the little madam, she decides, "oh, I know, why don't I just call on the Goblin King after _two years_, just like nothing happened!"'

Sarah flinched at his harsh words, and Jareth regretted opening his mouth immediately.

'Sarah, I –'

He was cut off when he suddenly broke into a ferocious coughing fit. His ribs felt as though they were on fire and he collapsed to his knees, trembling, tears of pain welling up in his eyes. He blinked them away impatiently as the coughing fit subsided and proceeded to continue his sentence.

Looking up, he saw that Sarah had knelt down opposite him, a look of fear in her eyes. She spoke before he could say a word.

'Jareth, w – what's… what's happened to you?' she whispered, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder, 'I – I noticed your voice – how it sounded – when you came in, but I… Jareth – tell me, please…'

'You're too late,' Jareth spat, his voice breaking.

'What… what do you mean…?' Sarah asked quietly, timidly. Although it was obvious from the look on her face that she knew exactly what he meant. Jareth didn't answer her, and Sarah's eyes grew wide with horror.

'No… no, please no, I –'

'I'm going to die, Sarah.'

Jareth's voice betrayed no emotion whatsoever, and tears started to form in Sarah's eyes at the bluntness of his words.

'You're wrong,' she said quietly, 'I didn't forget about you at all. I didn't wish for you because my dad left, or because of Irene or Toby. I wished for you because I wanted to see you again….'

Jareth was silent, his eyes narrowing slightly.

'My family made me realise how much I've missed you,' Sarah said, 'it wasn't easy, returning here after I'd defeated you, knowing what I'd done. And after things fell apart… I couldn't help but think about what you said. You were the person who I knew would treat me kindly. I realised that turning down your offer was one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made. I've thought about you ever since I left and… I've missed you… so, so much.'

_No._

Jareth wasn't going to let this get to him. His eyes met hers in a cold, emotionless stare. This had happened because of _her_! He loved her so much, yet part of him hated her for what she had done to him. If she had come sooner – no – if he had just let himself forget about her – why couldn't he?

'I told you. It's too late. _You're _too late. Two whole _years_ too late, Sarah!'

'Don't say that –'

'S – Sarah… Sarah, _Sarah_, can't you see?' Jareth whispered, his voice shaking, 'you – we can't do anything now. This is your doing. You have no _idea_ how I felt after you left the Labyrinth! You turned your back on your dreams, and it's too late to correct all of that now! The Labyrinth is finished – _I _am finished – and it is because of _you_!'

Jareth could feel his eyes welling up, but he struggled to keep his voice level. He tried to stand up, regain some of his dignity, but he was in too much pain to do so. He brought a hand to his chest and winced as he felt his ribs shake when he stumbled and fell back. Sarah caught him just before his head hit the bedpost and moved him so that his head was in her lap. He brought a trembling hand up to caress her cheek.

'I loved you, Sarah, and I still do,' he said gently, his expression softening, 'but why did it take you _two years_ to realise your mistake?'

Sarah sighed. 'I kept wanting to wish for you, but I thought you'd be angry at me for playing around. Much angrier than you were just now… I was scared at what you'd do.'

_You cowered before me. I was frightening._

'And so I kept putting it off until today, and I… I just… did it. And it's better late than never, right?'

Jareth hesitated.

'Sometimes it's better… never at all.'

Oh, why was she torturing him so? He only had a little longer to spend with her before he disappeared forever, and he didn't want to leave. But it was no use trying to meddle with time now, for he no longer had the energy to do anything except lie here. His magic would not work, it would be useless to attempt to travel to the Underground and heal his wounds. It was all Jareth could do not to let his wild, confused, broken emotions get the better of him.

_I have reordered time_.

'Don't say that, please…'

But Sarah's voice made him think otherwise. He brought his hand down from her face.

'Why not, Sarah?' he hissed, a note of impatience creeping back into his dying voice, 'can't you face the truth? Just like I had to face the harsh reality of you leaving me? When you came to the Labyrinth, I tried to do everything you expected of me. You showed no appreciation for my efforts, either. But I wanted to make you happy, Sarah.'

_I have turned the world upside down, and I have done it all for _you.

'But I couldn't keep trying to live up to your expectations without something in return. It was too much for me to bear.'

_I am exhausted from living up to your expectations._

'I guess there's… there's no going back now, is there?' Sarah asked plaintively.

Jareth shook his head, ignoring the pain it caused, and closed his eyes.

They stayed there silently for a few minutes. It was a surprisingly comfortable silence, given the conversation that had just gone on between them. Sarah stroked Jareth's hair and cheek, and he leaned into her touch, sighing contentedly.

At least he would die with her by his side. That was good enough.

'I love you,' Sarah said suddenly, 'and I'm sorry.'

Jareth opened his eyes – gods, it hurt just to do that. He studied her beautiful features before lifting up a hand and beckoning her closer silently. She bent towards him and he brought his hand around her head, guiding her face to his. Leaning up as much as he could, he planted a small, shaky kiss on her full lips.

All of a sudden, something within the depths of Jareth's chest seemed to explode and he let a moan of pain escape his lips, closing his eyes. Sarah gasped and held him close to her, murmuring words of comfort as he gently grasped her shoulder. She could feel his breathing getting shallower and more ragged underneath her as the seconds went by agonisingly slowly. Both of them wanted to hold on to whatever remained of the time they had left. Summoning up all of his strength, Jareth opened his eyes and took one last shuddering breath.

'I love you, too,' he whispered.

And with that, Jareth's breath left his body in a ragged, pain-filled gasp as his eyes slowly slid shut and his head fell back. His hand thudded to the floor, his body going limp. Sarah watched in horror as his chest rose and fell for the final time, her tears at last spilling down her cheeks while she cradled his body, closing her eyes and trying to fight off the tears.

When she opened them again, however, she saw that Jareth's Fae skin had begun to glow a pale gold. Tentatively touching his face, she drew her hand back in shock when his cheek crumbled in her hand. Sarah watched as his skin began to harden, then crumble away into glitter that dissolved into the air, until there was nothing left of him apart from a loose ruffled shirt, tights, boots and a glittering black cloak.

The Goblin King was gone.

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Yeah, I got sad writing this, but I had to get it out. I love Jareth, though. Hope I kept everyone in-character, but you've got be honest: Jareth's just died, so that might be the cause of any unintentional OOCness. Anyway, guess what? The Goblin King loves it when you review stories about him, so click that button! :D


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